The Winchester-Clark County Parks and Recreation department is gearing up for its fifth-annual Halloween Festival and haunted swamp.

According to Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Lewis, the festival will run from Oct. 28-29.

“It starts in the evening,” Lewis said. “In the gym we have bounce houses for the kids to play on.”

Doors to the department’s College Park office open at 6:30 p.m. for children and families with face-painting, crafts and games.

Lewis said for the first hour of the event, called the Tiny Terror hour, the building’s haunted house and swamp will be “toned down” for younger children.

After 7:30 p.m., the haunted house will become more intense and geared toward adults.

Lewis said the event has become very popular in its five years of existence, and the weekend typically draws large crowds.

“We’ve had as many as 400 people go through the haunted house in a weekend,” Lewis said.

The haunted house is run each year by Thom and Veronica Brown with the assistance of numerous volunteers.

Tickets for the festival are $5 if bought before Oct. 27. Tickets will be available at the door during the event for $8.